City seeks recycling grants

Matt Templeton, with the Tuscaloosa Environmental Services Department Curbside Recycling, picks up recyclables in heavy rain on Queen City Avenue on Dec. 10. Recycling pickup is done rain or shine on the same days as trash pickup.

File | Michelle Lepianka Carter | Tuscaloosa News

By Jason MortonStaff Writer

Published: Monday, January 14, 2013 at 3:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Sunday, January 13, 2013 at 11:25 p.m.

TUSCALOOSA | The city’s Environmental Services Department is seeking an annual grant to help fund improvements to its recycling program.

Facts

Among grant requests

Tuscaloosa city: $125,000 for a sorting machine that would speed the separation of recycled materials.

Tuscaloosa County: $77,000 for four recycle drop-off trailers to be placed at Faucett Brothers Activity Center, the Bobby Miller Center and two other locations.

PARA: $3,030 for recycling bins at its indoor activity centers.

University of Alabama: $92,000 for portable recycling containers for special events, indoor containers for residence halls and academic buildings, and large metal bins for outdoor areas.

But for this year’s $347,000 request, the city is teaming up with Tuscaloosa County, the Tuscaloosa County Park and Recreation Authority, the University of Alabama and others to expand recycling efforts in areas of the county that have yet to receive the service.

This partnership, which has the potential to benefit 65,000 households across Tuscaloosa County, is the result of new requirements related to the Alabama Department of Environmental Management’s recycling grant program.

Shane Daugherty, the city’s environmental services director, said ADEM is required to distribute at least 60 percent of the grant money to municipalities and utilities that serve at least 45,000 households.

The city of Tuscaloosa has about 23,000 households and would not qualify for the largest share of the grant funds by itself.

But by combining forces with others, the total served swells to 65,000.

“ADEM basically wants people to regionalize more and work together, and that’s good for the whole community,” Daugherty said. “And we’ve been fortunate. We’ve received a grant each year that we’ve asked for it.”

For the past three years, the city has received an average of $176,000 from the annual grant program, which is funded through fees collected at the state’s landfills.

The grant application is due March 1, and Daugherty said he hopes to hear what has been awarded by late June.

This year, the city’s largest request is for a $125,000 sorting machine that will speed the separation of recycled materials.

The machine also would aid in the separation of materials collected on county property and at PARA facilities if the grants for those agencies are approved.

The county is seeking $77,000 for four recycle drop-off trailers to be placed at PARA’s Faucett Brothers Activity Center near Northport, the Bobby Miller Center in Taylorville and two other locations in unincorporated areas of the county.

Meanwhile, PARA is seeking $3,030 for recycling bins at its indoor activity centers.

“PARA is about parks and being green, and we’ve known that we wanted to get into recycling for a long time, we just never could get the ball rolling on it,” said Becky Booker, the authority’s public relations and marketing manager. “Our part of the grant will give us a way to get started.”

For the University of Alabama, which has its own recycling processing plant, the grant is seeking about $92,000 for portable recycling containers for special events, some indoor containers for residence halls and academic buildings, and large metal bins for outdoor areas, such as Manderson Landing and university bus stops.

“Us partnering with the city is really going to help us out,” said Tony Johnson, the university’s executive director of logistics and support services. “This is really going to move our recycling efforts forward.”

Each agency also is asking for funds for promotional materials, and the city is the lead applicant on a second, $75,000 grant request that will fund commercials and other promotions for Tuscaloosa and three other Alabama cities, the East Alabama Recycling Partnership and the Alabama Environmental Council.

Daugherty said ADEM asked Tuscaloosa to be the lead applicant on this grant, primarily because ADEM can’t seek funds from its own grant program.

“They just called us,” Daugherty said. “I’d like to say it’s because we have a great relationship and work well with ADEM.”

<p>TUSCALOOSA | The city's Environmental Services Department is seeking an annual grant to help fund improvements to its recycling program.</p><p>But for this year's $347,000 request, the city is teaming up with Tuscaloosa County, the Tuscaloosa County Park and Recreation Authority, the University of Alabama and others to expand recycling efforts in areas of the county that have yet to receive the service.</p><p>This partnership, which has the potential to benefit 65,000 households across Tuscaloosa County, is the result of new requirements related to the Alabama Department of Environmental Management's recycling grant program.</p><p>Shane Daugherty, the city's environmental services director, said ADEM is required to distribute at least 60 percent of the grant money to municipalities and utilities that serve at least 45,000 households.</p><p>The city of Tuscaloosa has about 23,000 households and would not qualify for the largest share of the grant funds by itself.</p><p>But by combining forces with others, the total served swells to 65,000.</p><p>“ADEM basically wants people to regionalize more and work together, and that's good for the whole community,” Daugherty said. “And we've been fortunate. We've received a grant each year that we've asked for it.”</p><p>For the past three years, the city has received an average of $176,000 from the annual grant program, which is funded through fees collected at the state's landfills.</p><p>The grant application is due March 1, and Daugherty said he hopes to hear what has been awarded by late June.</p><p>This year, the city's largest request is for a $125,000 sorting machine that will speed the separation of recycled materials.</p><p>The machine also would aid in the separation of materials collected on county property and at PARA facilities if the grants for those agencies are approved.</p><p>The county is seeking $77,000 for four recycle drop-off trailers to be placed at PARA's Faucett Brothers Activity Center near Northport, the Bobby Miller Center in Taylorville and two other locations in unincorporated areas of the county.</p><p>Meanwhile, PARA is seeking $3,030 for recycling bins at its indoor activity centers.</p><p>“PARA is about parks and being green, and we've known that we wanted to get into recycling for a long time, we just never could get the ball rolling on it,” said Becky Booker, the authority's public relations and marketing manager. “Our part of the grant will give us a way to get started.”</p><p>For the University of Alabama, which has its own recycling processing plant, the grant is seeking about $92,000 for portable recycling containers for special events, some indoor containers for residence halls and academic buildings, and large metal bins for outdoor areas, such as Manderson Landing and university bus stops.</p><p>“Us partnering with the city is really going to help us out,” said Tony Johnson, the university's executive director of logistics and support services. “This is really going to move our recycling efforts forward.”</p><p>Each agency also is asking for funds for promotional materials, and the city is the lead applicant on a second, $75,000 grant request that will fund commercials and other promotions for Tuscaloosa and three other Alabama cities, the East Alabama Recycling Partnership and the Alabama Environmental Council.</p><p>Daugherty said ADEM asked Tuscaloosa to be the lead applicant on this grant, primarily because ADEM can't seek funds from its own grant program.</p><p>“They just called us,” Daugherty said. “I'd like to say it's because we have a great relationship and work well with ADEM.”</p><p>Reach Jason Morton at jason.morton@tuscaloosanews.com or 205-722-0200.</p>